Treating Teens’ Depression May Have a Ripple Effect on Their Families

Excerpted from The Atlantic, August 11, 2018

Preliminary new research, presented at the annual convention of the American Psychological Association on Saturday, suggests that when depressed teens go through some version of mental-health treatment, symptoms of depression in their parents lessen.

The finding, based on a study of 325 American teens and their parents, points to what might seem obvious in hindsight: Happier kids make for happier parents. It builds upon earlier research showing how mental health can be relational, hinting that mental-health care benefits not just individuals and their family members, but their entire communities.